Acid rain and Newton's ponds

By Justin Song/ Special To The Tab

 

 

Acid rain affects the US the most in the Northeast and the Midwest. This is mainly because of the heavy industries that exist in those areas, many of which produce gases that create acid rain when exposed to the atmosphere. The gases mostly responsible are sulfur and nitrogen oxides. At its worst, acid rain has reduced the pH of lakes and ponds to 4.6 in places, making those bodies of fresh water 10 times more acidic than they should be (the normal pH for bodies of water in the US is 5.6). At this pH, water can support little to no life. The Charles River is an example of a body of water that has been heavily affected by acid rain, due to years of industrial pollution.

For an Environmental Services Project at NNHS this past year, I tested three bodies of water in Newton to see how much acid rain continues to affect our city: Crystal Lake, Hammond Pond, and Bullough's Pond, which are all in the Charles River watershed. I tested each body of water in two locations, separated by at least 150 feet at each location, I recorded air temperature, weather, water temperature and the time. I then took a water sample measuring 50ml, and obtained a reading using a pH meter. I did four rounds of testing.

Crystal Lake and Hammond Pond had pH values of 5.5 and 5.4 respectively. Bullough's Pond was slightly more acidic than the other two, with a pH of 5.25. These pH values for all three bodies of water were normal, deviating very little from the norm of 5.6. The most likely cause of the acidity of Bullough's Pond is eutrophication. When people use lots of fertilizer, or any chemicals rich in nitrogen or phosphorous, around a body of water, these chemicals often end up in the water due to runoff from irrigation or rain. These chemicals enhance the growth of algae in the lake or pond to amounts that are unhealthy for the life within it. Too much algae, as it dies, causes excess carbon dioxide to be dissolved in the water, which changes the pH, making the water more acidic. Eutrophication also reduces dissolved oxygen levels in the water, limiting the ability of the lake or pond to support larger organisms like fish, and it blocks sunlight to plants in the water, which further reduces oxygen levels in the water. Fortunately, although Bullough's Pond is slightly acid, Newton is not significantly impacted by acid rain at this time.

We need to remain vigilant, however, because acid rain can have silent, but devastating effects on fresh water lakes and ponds. It can free harmful chemical ions from the soil, like aluminum ions, which then run off into nearby bodies of water. These ions are absorbed by the organisms in the water and may cause disease or death. When fish absorb too many of these ions, their gills produce a mucus which interferes with respiration. Since almost all aquatic life absorbs ions in the water indiscriminately, acid rain can poison the water to a point where only the hardiest organisms can survive.

The unwanted effects of acid rain are not limited to ponds or lakes. Acid rain with a pH of less than 5 can damage terrestrial environments, including making soil uninhabitable for plants. Plants cannot absorb vital nutrients properly in soil that is highly acidic; their growth is hindered or they may die. Acid rain can literally destroy plants by eating through them. This has far-reaching ecosystem effects when plants, the staple of the food web, cannot replace themselves as quickly as animals eat them. The consequences for animals may include rashes, birth defects, elevated rates of infant mortality and even famine, which can decimate local animal populations.

Because acid rain has many serious negative environmental consequences, steps have been taken by our federal government to reduce it. The Clean Air Act of 1990 has reduced the amount of acidifying gases by million of tons. In the past 30 years, developing cleaner methods to smelt ores and mandating taller smoke stacks in factories have reduced sulfur and nitrogen oxide emissions significantly. Cleaner ways of burning coal and requiring automobiles to be more fuel-efficient and equipped with emissions control devices have also helped to protect the public and the environment from the detrimental effects of acid rain. Also, environmental groups have promoted the planting of natural chemical buffers in soils affected by acid rain, which has protected certain habitats. By working for fewer and cleaner emissions from factories and developing clean energy sources, we can all help to ensure that acid rain will not leave a permanent scar on the landscape of Newton.

Justin Song, a resident of West Newton, is an AP Biology student completing his junior year at NNHS.

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Rising from the ashes

By Asa Swain/ Special To The Tab

 

When I think about clean energy, I think about wind turbines and solar power. Coal power is certainly not the first thing that comes to mind. But coal power plants provide over a quarter of our energy in Massachusetts (and over half of our energy nationwide). So while researching alternative energy sources is important, cleaning up our existing plants will have a much bigger and more immediate effect on the environment. The Clean Air Act has greatly reduced the amount of aerial pollutants released by coal power plants, but much of it is instead just sent to landfills. So I was intrigued when I learned about a new industry that has sprung up, an industry that uses a waste product from coal power plants to help mix better cement.

Now for most of us, making cement isn't very complicated. When I do backyard cement work, I mix two buckets of sand, one bucket of portland cement, and enough water to hold it all together. And that works just fine for home construction projects. But big industrial projects, like bridges, skyscrapers, and dams, need really high quality cement. There are a wide variety of mixes out there, depending on the kind of concrete required, but most formulas include fly ash: the fine residue created in the combustion of coal.

This is not a new discovery: the Romans made cement with a similar kind of ash, and Americans have been using fly ash for more than half a century. Today fly ash is used to supplement portland cement, as is slag cement, which is ground granulated slag (the byproduct of metal smelting). When portland cement, fly ash and slag cement are combined, the result is cheaper than pure portland cement, more malleable when poured, slower to set, and stronger in its hardened form. Using less portland cement also has an environmental benefit; it reduces the energy use and gas emissions of the mixing process.

Before the passage of the 1990 update to the Clean Air Act, some fly ash was separated for cement production, but most of the ash was just released into the air. This changed in 1990 due to the Clean Air Act's nitrogen oxide restrictions, which mandated that fly ash be filtered out of coal power plant emissions. So instead of releasing it into the air, power plants dispose of their ash in landfills. While this is an improvement, it still has economic and environmental costs.

The good news is that this excess fly ash is a great new supply for cement companies, and power plants would rather sell it than truck it to landfills. But you can't use fly ash straight from power plants, because it is often contaminated with carbon from the burning coal (the carbon interferes with the chemical bonding process of the cement). Some plants use air scrubbers or baghouses to remove the carbon. More recently, several companies have developed a more efficient technique for purifying fly ash, a process called electrostatic separation.

As the fly ash is fed between two oppositely charged electrode plates, the unburned carbon particles take on a positive charge, while the fly ash particles become negatively charged. Particles are attracted to the oppositely charged plates, and mesh conveyer belts carry each type to different destinations. The electrostatic separator can process 40 tons of fly ash an hour and only uses 1-2 KWh of electricity per ton of ash. Besides selling the purified fly ash, coal power plants can also re-burn the leftover carbon, creating additional energy and resulting in almost no waste.

A whole new recycling industry, including one company here in Needham, has developed in the past decade, by installing technology like electrostatic separators in coal power plants and helping to market fly ash to cement companies. Though critics often assert that cleaning up power plants would be too costly and would result in higher electricity prices, this unlikely union between coal power plants and cement companies demonstrates that you can turn a waste product into a useful commodity, and make both economic and environmental sense in the process.

Asa Swain is a native of Newton Highlands who graduated from NNHS and more recently from Carleton College.

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Water conservation

By Rebecca Scibek and Margaret Van Deusen/ Special To The Tab

 

Although it may seem like there is always plenty of rain in Massachusetts, especially this past May and June, water is a finite resource. Between 70 and 75 percent of the Earth's surface is covered with water, but only 1 percent of that is available for human use. Despite recent heavy rains, groundwater levels will soon begin to drop as trees and plants take up water and higher temperatures increase evaporation rates.

During the summer, the water in the Charles River is made up almost entirely of baseflow, meaning water that flows into the river from groundwater. Little recharge of aquifers occurs in the summer and, consequently, there is less groundwater available to feed the Charles and its tributaries.

This relative lack of groundwater is mainly due to man-made changes to the water cycle, which prevent water from infiltrating into the ground and recharging aquifers. Buildings, parking lots and roads all prevent rainwater from getting back into the ground to replenish groundwater stores. Newton's municipal storm drain system, which collects stormwater in a centralized drain system and discharges it through outfalls to the river, also short-circuits the natural hydrological cycle and prevents recharge.

Fortunately, small measures add up to big water savings, and each of us can help protect our water resources. Water conservation helps to lower utility costs, protect our rivers, and preserve our water supply for future generations.

Knowledge of water conservation techniques has grown dramatically during the past decade. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently created WaterSense, a program working with water suppliers, product manufacturers and retailers to promote water-efficient products and practices. The products, from front-loading washers to weather-based irrigation systems, are now widely available.

Using water wisely is becoming increasingly important in Massachusetts. The MA Department of Conservation and Recreation has been working to update the state's Water Conservation Standards, first developed in 1992. In September the Water Resources Commission is expected to adopt the Standards, which set water conservation targets for water managers and users.

These Standards, designed to help citizens and water suppliers use water efficiently, are central to the state's efforts to ensure the long-term health and sustainability of our water resources.Water conservation will help Newton residents to control burgeoning water bills.

More than 60 percent of the public water supply in Massachusetts is used for domestic purposes, so improvements in residential water efficiency will have dramatic results. Here are some recommendations included in the Standards:

·      Work toward using no more than 65 gallons of water per person per day, indoor and outdoor water use combined

·      Check pipes, toilets, and fixtures regularly for leaks, which are costly for you and the environment- a faucet dripping once per second wastes 2,700 gallons per year!

·      Sweep driveways, walks, and decks rather than hosing them off

·      Wash cars with a bucket and sponge (with biodegradable soap), not a hose

·      Install water-efficient plumbing fixtures, such as low-flow showerheads and toilets, and faucet aerators

·      Minimize use of garbage disposals, and compost instead, to save water and provide organic material for gardens

·      Cover swimming pools when not in use to prevent evaporation.

·      Water use can double in the summertime, mostly due to lawn watering. Here are some simple tips:

·      Water lawns once a week and only before 8 a.m. or after 6 p.m, when the sun is low and winds are light. Watering too often and too much encourages grass to produce shallow roots

·      Plantdrought-tolerant grasses and native species, avoiding water-hungry ornamentals

·      Recognize that a healthy lawn naturally becomes dormant during times of drought -grass will turn yellow or brown, but will become green again when the rains return

·      Redirect gutter downspouts away from pavement and onto grass and gardens where water can infiltrate into the ground. Use rain barrels or cisterns to collect water for irrigation

·      For automatic irrigation systems, use the best available moisture sensing technology to ensure systems operate only when necessary, and keep them properly maintained.

Rebecca Scibek is the volunteer coordinator/office manager, and Margaret Van Deusen is the deputy director and general counsel for the CRWA.

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When the robin stops bobbin' along

By Lois A Levin/ Special To The Tab

 

Many of the diseases that threaten human populations today originated in wildlife, and each disease has a unique transmission pathway. The diseases include HIV/AIDS, avian influenza (including the strain currently threatening to cause a human pandemic), SARS, Nipah virus, Lyme Disease and West Nile virus.

According to biologist Peter Daszak, director of the Consortium for Conservation Medicine in NY, West Nile virus is the major vector borne disease in the US. Since arriving here in 1999, most likely on an airplane, it has infected about a million people, caused 22,000 people to fall ill and resulted in at least 826 deaths. In 2006, between 2,000 and 10,000 new cases are expected in the US.

The greatest concentration of cases has been in the East, but the disease has also shown up in Colorado and California. Our area is at risk of West Nile virus again this summer. Computer models developed to predict the risks of human infection indicate that cases of West Nile will peak from late July to mid-August, and then decline toward the end of August.

When the virus first arrived in North America in 1999, thousands of crows contracted it. Recently, it has been discovered that large numbers of robins are now dying of this disease.

This is no reason to be afraid of robins. Humans cannot contract the disease from birds, only from being bitten by a Culex pipiens mosquito. Not only are robins far more appealing to these mosquitoes than humans, it turns out that mosquitoes prefer robins to all other birds, including crows and house sparrows. The robins hopping around on our lawns are members of the "host" species, and they are protecting us from the virus, temporarily. However, when the robins start to migrate south later in the summer, the mosquitoes will continue to look for blood meals, and the risk to humans will increase significantly - seven-fold.

This is just one reason why biodiversity, which is reduced whenever wildlife habitat is lost or fragmented, is so fundamental to the maintenance of human health, and why we need to limit human encroachment on wildlife habitats. Wildlife serves as a "reservoir" for many pathogens against which humans have little or no immunity. Of course, a pathogen such as West Nile virus is a threat to wildlife, too, and entire ecosystems are affected by a die-off of significant numbers of animals. When host species become threatened or extinct or the number of potential host species is reduced, humans are deprived of the buffers against many viruses borne by vectors such as mosquitoes.

As researchers learn more about the reasons that West Nile virus is partial to robins, they will be better able to predict outbreaks and make recommendations to prevent the disease from spreading to other regions. The public needs to support this research. Understanding the links between environmental factors and human health has never been more important than it is today.

Lois A Levin, PhD is the Environment Page Editor for the Newton TAB..

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Integrated pest management in Newton

By Ed Cunningham/ Special To The Tab

 

Prodded and guided by the Green Decade Coalition's Committee for Alternatives to Pesticides (GreenCAP), the city of Newton, in September 1997, became the first municipality in the state to adopt an Integrated Pest Management policy. What happened here in the mid 1990s is an example of how government should work: a small grassroots group of concerned citizens saw a need and was able to affect a municipality's policy and direction. They succeeded, not only because of their vision and dedicated effort, but because IPM is common sense, backed by science, logic, and economics.

This article looks at how IPM came to Newton, what the city's IPM policy is, and what has been accomplished under that policy. It concludes that work remains to be done and that there is still plenty of room for concerned citizens to follow the lead of our IPM pioneers.

GreenCAP was formed in 1994 by Newton residents Maeve Ward and Ellie Goldberg. The nascent group worked to reduce the use of toxins for weed and insect control in the city and in 1996 received a grant from the Toxins Use Reduction Institute at UMASS Lowell. The grant established a partnership among four Newton groups - the Conservation Commission, the Conservators, the Parks and Recreation Department and GreenCAP - to promote pollution prevention policies such as IPM. A task force began work on IPM guidelines for the city's grounds and buildings, GreenCAP's education and outreach projects continued, and a year later Mayor Concannon announced the city's IPM Policy.

It became city policy to eliminate the use of pesticides except as a last resort and to prevent the contamination of buildings, soil, air, and water. The policy also dictated that IPM principles and practices be followed in all work done to city grounds and buildings, whether performed by city employees or outside contractors. An IPM Advisory Committee was formed to coordinate the work of city departments responsible for buildings and grounds regarding the prevention or elimination of pests. Chaired by Doug Dickson since its inception, it consists of representatives of the Departments of Health, Public Buildings, Parks and Recreation, and Public Schools and of community organizations such as the Green Decade Coalition.

Under the direction of the committee, maintenance plans describing how to monitor, document, and handle pest populations were written for all city schools and grounds. Guidelines written for the city's playing fields set mowing heights, watering and aerating policies, and fertilizer characteristics. Environmental Management Teams (EMTs), with PTO and community representation, were established to oversee the plans at each Newton school. Maintenance plans and EMTs and are currently being created for all municipal buildings. The committee develops and runs annual staff training programs. It monitors pest problems and reviews requests or proposals to use pesticides.

In February 2004 the Newton schools won IPM STAR certification after undergoing a rigorous process overseen by Dr. Thomas Green of the IPM Institute of North America, who worked closely on the project with Advisory Committee member Don Rivard, a Waltham-based IPM consultant. The history of pest problems, the condition of buildings and grounds, and the pesticides used in the prior three years were all inspected. Certification requires that IPM policies and plans be in place to guide school administrators and staff in preventing or responding to pest problems.

As this award attests, there have been IPM successes in Newton. But IPM is a continuous process; there will always be more work to do. Reports trickle back to the committee of mowing height standards not being followed, of spraying taking place when it is not a last resort, of vent systems being blocked resulting in temperature control and air quality problems, of cleaning guidelines not being followed, resulting in pest infestation. Plans and training which should prevent these occurrences are in place, but vigilance and follow-up are constantly needed.

Vital to the success of the IPM plans in the schools are the EMTs. An EPA document, "IPM for Schools," states that "Successful IPM programs in schools have come from concerned parents." Carol Bock, IPM Advisory Committee member and Newton School Department Director of Capital Planning and Operations, agrees: "The schools with very active and successful EMTs are the schools where the parents are very involved." As a parent, you can help make IPM work in your children's schools.

The more people read about IPM, the more they realize that it should be mainstream thought and practice. Successful IPM not only makes our buildings and landscapes safer and healthier, it saves money. We should follow it in our own homes and yards as well. Like the IPM pioneers in Newton, you can make a difference. Learn more about IPM. Put it into practice.

Ed Cunningham is the Green Decade Coalition representative to the Newton IPM Advisory Committee.

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The invasion of the home snatchers

By Bruce Wenning/ Special To The Tab

 

 

Many kinds of pests find their way into your home. Some you can tolerate, others you can't. Carpenter ants and carpenter bees are insects that want to move in with you. When they invade your space, the damage can be extensive and costly.

Ants are the most recognized insects on earth, with many subfamilies, genera and species worldwide. They are in the Order Hymenoptera (bees, ants, wasps, sawflies and parasitic wasps). They have three distinct body regions; head, thorax, and abdomen, and their antennae, which are usually elbowed (bent), function as chemical receptors.

 

Ants nest in colonies and cooperate in raising their young, finding food and defending the colony. They exhibit a caste system comprised of a queen, males and workers. The division of labor in the colony is an integral condition of group living. Queens fly to mate with males, and once mated, a queen will remove her wings and remain dedicated to egg laying for the colony. Males have wings and die soon after mating with the queen. Workers, as their name implies, do most of the colony's work; they are sterile wingless females. Large colonies can have over 3,000 worker ants.

There are many ant species found throughout the United States. The most destructive Eastern species is Camponotus pennsylvanicus, the black carpenter ant, which is common in New England. These ants are attracted to damp wood caused by leaking roofs, wood in contact with soil, leaking plumbing fixtures, insulation, blocked gutters, poorly ventilated attics and crawl spaces, and other wooden structures (supports, walls, pillars, siding, joists, sills) that are rotted or water-damaged. When Carpenter ants invade a home or other wooden structure and establish a colony with a queen, it is usually bad news.

Carpenter ants can be found around the periphery of your home in moist foundation mulches, piles of damp leaves and branches and woodpiles. The best approach to the carpenter ant problem is preventive: eliminate damp habitats around the exterior of your home (as well as inside).

Carpenter ants are frequently confused with termites, which are also wood-destroying insects. Termites are soft-bodied and usually white or cream colored; they are sometimes called, erroneously, "white ants" although they are more closely related to cockroaches than to ants. Carpenter ants, in contrast, are hard-bodied and black or dark brown in color. Termites (which are in the small order Isoptera, meaning equal wings) have fore and hind wings that are nearly equal in size and which fold at rest close to the body. Carpenter ants, whose fore wings are larger than their hind wings, usually extend or hold their wings above their body at rest.

Termites do not have a "waist" (constriction between the thorax and abdomen), whereas carpenter ants do have this constriction. Termites have bead-like antennae while carpenter ants have their antennae in segments resembling a short "arm" and "elbow." Unlike termites, carpenter ants do not eat or digest wood, but instead excavate mostly moist and soft wood (and sometimes dry wood) and deposit the resulting "sawdust" outside their colony, while keeping their galleries clean. Wood digesting termites, on the other hand, line their galleries with moist soil. Carpenter ants are both predators and scavengers, feeding on live and dead insects, plant sap of certain plants, aphid and sap sucking insect honey dew, and various food scraps.

Another type of wood-destroying insect, sometimes mistaken for bumble bees, are carpenter bees, also in the order Hymenoptera (like carpenter ants). They differ from bumble bees in their body markings. Carpenter bees have black abdomens while bumble bees have yellow abdominal markings. Carpenter bees tend to fly and hover high up against buildings and windowsills to excavate their galleries in dry wood. Females have a stinger but rarely sting. Males do not have a stinger and are harmless to humans.

The US has seven species of carpenter bees. The most destructive to homes and other wooden structures is the Eastern species, Xylocopa virginica. They can cause significant damage by boring into and excavating wood year after year. You may see this species flying near windowsills, eaves, wooden siding, fence posts, railings, and other very dry wooden structures. An infestation is first detected by finding large amounts of sawdust below half-inch diameter entrance holes in wood. Applying linseed oil to dry wood can reduce the attractiveness of such wood to these bees.

Carpenter ants, carpenter bees, and termites utilize trees and other woody plants and materials as part of their life cycle. Each is important in its respective niche, but when they invade our domain they become pests. Homeowners who find it necessary to control or eradicate them should consult a certified pest control company and request that they deal with the problem in the most environmentally benign way possible.

For more information see Arnold Mallis, Handbook of Pest Control; Hansen & Klotz, Carpenter Ants of the United States and Canada, and www.ceinfo.unh.edu

Bruce Wenning is horticulturist and grounds manager at Mass Audubon Society, Habitat sanctuary, Belmont and serves on the Board of Directors of the Ecological Landscaping Association, www.ecolandscaping.org.

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